Editorial
February 2010 Issue

Legacy of Colin Archer is Still Alive and Kicking

By Darrell Nicholson

If you think your boat is a bear to maintain, you might take some consolation in this month’s used-boat review of the Union 36. It is a fiberglass boat, but considering the amount of teak on deck and belowdecks, it might as well be made of wood. Not that there is anything very wrong with that. The 32-footer my wife Theresa and I cruised on for 11 years was very similar—a big, heavy double-ender—and ours was made of wood. While our 1937 William Atkin Thistle design differed significantly from the Union 36 and the modern double-enders that Bob Perry would later unveil (the Tayana 37 and Valiant 40, among the better known), these boats can be broadly traced to a common ancestor: the North Sea rescue boats designed by the renowned Norwegian naval architect Colin Archer.

To continue reading this article you must be a paid subscriber.

Subscribe to Practical Sailor

Get the next 7 issues of PRACTICAL SAILOR for just $19.97. And access all of our online content - more than 1,500 evaluations, reviews and articles on sailing gear,
equipment and boats - free of charge. That's a savings of more than $14 off the regular rate. Or double your savings and subscribe for 14 issues for just $39.94.

Get Practical Sailor Digital

Get 12 months of PRACTICAL SAILOR DIGITAL for just $34. You get unlimited access to everything on the site including each monthly issue as a PDF.

Inside Practical Sailor Blog

For washing your sails, most sailmakers recommend using mild soap and water, and avoiding anything abrasive. Use a soft brush, if necessary, to loosen dirt. For dirt or stains that are more deeply embedded, you may need to soak the sail, so you'll have to locate some kind of large container, depending upon the size of the soiled area.